Ask Tom: Are winter tornadoes possible?

Dear Tom,

Is it possible for a tornado to form during the winter?

— Paul Brody

Dear Paul,

Yes. The likelihood of a winter tornado here in the Midwest, while remote, is nonetheless a distinct possibility. Winter tornadoes (defined as December, January and February occurrences) occur most frequently in the Gulf states: Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and south Texas. They are relatively infrequent, however, with those states averaging about three or four tornadoes per month during those months. With the arrival of spring, the area of peak tornado occurrence moves northwest into the southern and central Great Plains, and then north to the northern Great Plains in the late summer and fall. Tornado Alley, the area of greatest tornado frequency, extends from central Texas into Nebraska.